Civ ... in ... SPACE!

[Apollos]

Let's give you an excuse to jump on the bandwagon, shall we? Pre-order Sid Meier's Civilization: Beyond Earth from Green Man Gaming and use code 01S6ZC-JVSB28-JRW7X4 at checkout. You'll knock the price down from $50 to $38. How can you resist such a deal?

Nice find, I'll def place this order while it's still around. $12 off a pre-release title doesn't happen too frequently.

[Bill]

Just a heads up as release is slated for Friday.

I've read it is a lot like Civ 5 in space. Which should be a good thing. I'm a little worried it will get stale quickly if it is too much like Civ 5, but we will see. Strap on your space helmets....

[Leones]

Well that's no good. I was hoping to get some sleep this weekend. :)

[Mike Dunn]

I'm very much on the fence about this. I loved SMAC, but I watched a gameplay video of this and was like 'meh.' Also, backlog of other games. Someone convince me.

Let's give you an excuse to jump on the bandwagon, shall we? Pre-order Sid Meier's Civilization: Beyond Earth from Green Man Gaming and use code 01S6ZC-JVSB28-JRW7X4 at checkout. You'll knock the price down from $50 to $38. How can you resist such a deal?

That code is not good anymore but FYI if you want a pre-order discount from GMG, at the same $12 off, go to http://www.greenmangaming.com/vip/ but you must first have a GMG login.

[John]

I'm very much on the fence about this. I loved SMAC, but I watched a gameplay video of this and was like 'meh.' Also, backlog of other games. Someone convince me.

I want to convince you, Mike, but frankly, I experienced a similar reaction when watching the gameplay video. Given my lack of free time, I think I'm going to sit on the fence and see what the reviewers have to say. Don't mind paying the extra $12 if it turns out to be good.

[Evas]

I will eventually be all in on this one, but not on the first day and not at this price.

My backlog is too big. I am very much enjoying Wasteland 2 at the moment and have Pillars of Eternity lined up after that.

I'll probably look at it during the Steam Winter sale.

[Bill]

One thing I forgot...the Mac and Linux version is supposed to release sometime behind the PC version. Unfortunately, I'll be waiting for the Mac version.

[Mike Dunn]

I'm very much on the fence about this. I loved SMAC, but I watched a gameplay video of this and was like 'meh.' Also, backlog of other games. Someone convince me.

I want to convince you, Mike, but frankly, I experienced a similar reaction when watching the gameplay video. Given my lack of free time, I think I'm going to sit on the fence and see what the reviewers have to say. Don't mind paying the extra $12 if it turns out to be good.

I did read that they will have a demo on Day One. It will be limited by a number of turns, so you won't see the mid- to late-game probably, but it may help those of us on the fence.

Like Kevin, my backlog runneth over, so waiting to try the demo, waiting to see reviews, and waiting for a Steam sale is no problem.

Bill, I saw the Mac and Linux versions should be out by year's end.

[Alleghenies]

This is just terrible. I was really trying hard to cut back on my game playing at home and vowed to only play elite dangerous, star citizen and OOTP at my house. Fortunately my boss said that I can bring in my laptop in during my night shifts, so now my dream of getting paid to play video games is finally a reality. So now I just have to check the requirements and see if my laptop can run it then I'll be good to go!

[Lions]

Fortunately my boss said that I can bring in my laptop in during my night shifts, so now my dream of getting paid to play video games is finally a reality.

Nice!

I watched a gameplay video of this last night and basically felt like it was a reskinning of Civ 5 that modernizes Alpha Centauri. In that sense, I think it'll be a very solid game but not one that's groundbreaking. The satellite support concept is novel as is the notion of interacting with the native life (aka barbarian replacement) in order to use them in your nefarious schemes. The tech tree looks intimidating. I think there will be some nuances that don't come across well in an 8 minute demo that will suck people in. I didn't see anything related to customizing your units the way you could in AC, which was one of my favorite aspects of that game.

[Mike Dunn]

I'm definitely waiting. The early reviews are tepid.

http://www.ign.com/articles/2014/10/23/ ... rth-review

http://www.gamespot.com/reviews/civiliz ... 0-6415923/

[John]

Here are a batch of reviews that are a little more upbeat than the ones Mike posted:

• Eurogamer.net (8/10)
• Gaming Nexus (9/10)
• PC Gamer (87/100)
• Polygon (9/10)

[Alleghenies]

Here are a batch of reviews that are a little more upbeat than the ones Mike posted:

• Eurogamer.net (8/10)
• Gaming Nexus (9/10)
• PC Gamer (87/100)
• Polygon (9/10)

Thanks for those links. I've always found PC Gamer to be the most objective and accurate based on the types of games I like. When they say the game is just a remake with a new skin and don't buy it unless you always buy every game from that genre or you'll be sorry, they are always correct. So many times I didn't believe them because I thought a certain game looked cool and bought it anyway but was sorry. PC gamer is the only reviewer that hasn't really ever let me down.

[John]

Yup, I have long trusted PC Gamer for fair, accurate assessments. The fact that they like Civilization: Beyond Earth is certainly encouraging. I'm still going to play the waiting game, but I have more hope today than I did yesterday.

[Alleghenies]

I think the PC Gamer article nails it. Below is kind of a sequential summary of the article. He starts out not liking it so much, but at the end discovers it is much more than he had thought.

"It is in many ways exactly the same game as Civ 5, just spacier."

*Side note on Alpha Centauri* "That said, if I had come to Beyond Earth looking for a direct sequel or a modern update to the 1999 game, I would have been wildly disappointed. Although it does have narrative elements, and certain signature aspects of Alpha Centauri have crept in, Beyond Earth is very much its own game."

"Beyond Earth’s many similarities to Civ 5 mask, to its detriment, a game that is remarkably new and different, and once I was able to see past those similarities, the newness and wonder of playing in a future Civ sandbox washed over me like a slow boiling pot of water. I was engrossed before I realized it."

"As the Brazilians, I was aiming for a Purity affinity, but fumbled my way through the research web willy-nilly and eventually lost the game without ever realizing one of my enemies had been close to victory. Not great, but that’s when it finally dawned on me that Beyond Earth, in spite of its heavy foundation in Civ 5’s mechanics and rules, is actually a completely different game."

And then, his conclusion summarizes why I want this game: "This is how Beyond Earth succeeds in spite of its similarities to Civ 5. It offers a game steeped in the traditions and mechanics of Civilization, that’s nevertheless surprising and new in often unexpected ways. I’ve conquered countless civilizations on the planet Earths of each various Civilization game, and each time it’s felt like reinventing a fantasy version of the past. In Beyond Earth, victory feels like living in—and forging—humanity’s future, and I can honestly say I’ve never had more fun building a civ “to stand the test of time.”

I don't know what it is, but this is why I've always trusted PC Gamer over others like IGN or Gamespot. They just seem to understand games and take a closer look at games than others. Like I said before, PC Gamer has never steered me wrong and I'll continue trusting them with this game and buy it.